Didsbury High School, Manchester

This new four-storey building fulfills the educational needs of 1,350 pupils. Its cutting edge facilities include a sports hall and fitness suite, a three-court multi-use games area, teaching spaces, a performance hall, learning centre and special educational needs resources. Rockfon ceilings from four ranges were specified to suit particular needs throughout.

David Woolley of school owner’s Laurus Trust, “The brief had significant environmental, educational and financial challenges. Architects Pozzoni have faced each of these head on with great creativity. They have developed a fabulous design which meets the needs of all stakeholders.”

The perfect solution for each space

Rockfon Blanka® dB41 is installed on two floors to offer a high level of sound absorption (Class A) and room to room sound insulation. It has a smooth, deep matt, super white surface finish with enhanced durability making it more resistant to dirt and everyday wear and tear.

The school is built on a prominent and constrained ‘gateway’ site alongside a busy main route into Manchester. The elegant solution to the challenges presented by the compromised plot was to create a highly efficient ‘superblock’ that includes a number of external terraces for recreation and sporting activities.

Color-all is available in charcoal plus 34 other standard colours.

It offers excellent sound absorption – αw up to 1.00 (Class A) and Reaction To Fire: A1, EN 13501-1 and Class A2 s1,d0. In total, 800m² of Color-all charcoal tiles were fitted throughout the two storey drama rooms.

‘The Hive’ is an internal space that provides access to the main school hall and visual links to other key areas within the school. It also acts as a light-well and a circulation space. The social core of the Hive is the dining hall, which has internal windows that act as a wayfinding tools to other areas.

Design Manager Lee Parker, BAM, commented, “We collaborated with Rockfon to create the ceiling specifications proposal and then liaised with the acousticians Ramboll and Graham Flynn of installers, Sound Interiors, to ensure the varied demands of each space were successfully met.”

Ramboll Acoustics Associate, Simon Taylor, “The Rockfon team and their ceiling systems helped us achieve success in creating a school which meets the acoustic requirements of BB93 for the Education and Skills Funding Agency.”

Resilient, safe, contemporary elegance

Throughout classrooms, corridors and stairs, 3075m² of easy to install and lightweight Rockfon® Tropic™ helps create bright, contemporary spaces, offering high light reflectance.

Graham Flynn of ceiling installers, Sound Interiors, “This was a great job with no issues and we are pleased to be working with Rockfon on two further major projects right now.”

In the school’s kitchen areas, toilets and changing rooms 850m² of non-hygroscopic Rockfon® Hygienic™ has been installed. Embodying Class A sound absorption and highest fire safety (Class A1), Hygienic will withstand pressure washing and offers up to 100% humidity resistance.